James Chastel
James Anthony William Chastel is former Naval Officer and General, Politician and the eldest son of Dillon Chastel. He is the biological brother of Luke Chastel and was adopted by Dillon in 519 with his brother Luke later being adopted in 520. In 548 he was commended by the Emperor for his services in the Falleen Army and for leading the campaign in Balchepra in what was regarded as a very fierce ordeal. He became active in the political scene following the war, despite a brief stint as an MBP in the Balbish Parliament pre-war, when he was appointed as the new Federal Representative of Cartria. This appointment came after the retirement of long standing Representative, Herbert Samuel, who stood down due to his growing age. His appointment came direct from the Emperor and was rumoured to be in an effort to tame the rising Nationalist sentiment within the State. Until 559 James served as Governor-General of Haalsia and committed himself to restless work to try and stabilise Haalsia. Early Life James was adopted by Dillon Chastel in 519 a mere few months before they adopted his younger brother Luke also. His parents had been killed in a tragic automobile accident shortly after his 2nd birthday and it is not known how much James remembers of this as he seldom talks about his younger years. James, due to Dillon's wealth and status as Chancellor, received an education of the highest quality at Cambridge University in Darpartyro, the best University in the Empire. He graduated in 536, having just turned 20, obtaining relatively high tier qualifications in Politics, Falleen Studies and Law. He was often reported as a model student; alert, studious and charismatic, however he was often mocked by his classmates for his family's "new money" status. During his university years he relatively kept himself out of any big scandals or newspaper reports, preferring instead to focus on his studies and his political explorations. During his years at University he also became involved in many societies, proving himself to be a fair hand at fencing, horsemanship and debating. First Political Venture (535-537) During his pre-university years he had actively explored avenues for political opportunities and had numerous contacts across the political spectrum. He eventually had his chance and he contested in the Trocadéro by-election in 533. The by-election took place in the leafy and affluent suburb of Trocadéro, after the previous Balbish MBP died of pneumonia, and was considered a safe Conservative seat. However after an intensive grassroots campaign James achieved an startling win over the Conservative candidate, Nicolas Sarkozy, by only 19 votes. This came as a surprise to many but especially to James himself, who is rumoured to have only expected to run Sarkozy close so the Liberal Party would win. He remained in this seat until he stood down to focus on his final exams in 535. The Second Great War (538-548) Following his graduation James spent many months touring the Empire and getting to meet many of his deceased father's friends. This changed with the outbreak of war in 538, which brought Falleentium into conflict with Shiha and Kaarnor, and caused James to openly declare his intention to serve his country. After engaging in conversation with Viscount Hess II, the head of the Navy and whose family had been longstanding friends of the Chastel family, he announced publicly that he would be serving in the Navy for the duration of the war, having obtained a position aboard the Falleen flagship aircraft carrier, the aptly named HMS Dillon Chastel. He served on this vessel as the Chief Bridge officer and right hand man to Admiral Hess and served with distinction through the early and mid-stages of the war. Following the winding down of naval operations and the increasing tensions appearing within Balchepra James took it upon himself to request a transferal to the Falleen Army in early January of 546. His request was granted by the Emperor following much lobbying by Fleet Admiral Hess and in early March he was given command of the 5th Army with the arduous task of leading a Falleen expedition to support the beleaguered Balcheprian forces. By the time he arrived the Golden Empire soldiers within the Nation had already inflicted many stinging defeats upon the Balcheprian Army and were advancing on the Capital, rather than risk an all out rush to support the capital James adopted a more cautious approach. This was to advance inland while maintain enough reserves to adopt to the situation and ensure that links to his supply ports could be maintained and cleared of any enemy resistance. However only two months into his campaign James received shocking news that the Balcheprian capital had fallen and their King, Ferdinand III, had been forced into hiding with only the loyalest of his officers. This being the case he decided to speed up the rate of his advance, draft in some heavy field artillery from the Falleen Mainland and call upon more Balcheprian units to link up with him and coordinate their efforts more. These efforts proved successful and by late 547 the 5th Army and affiliated units were advancing twice as fast as they had been in early 547 and were managing to inflict grueling defeats upon the Golden Forces, often done by fierce bayonet charges in which the Balcheprian units proved exemplary. Ultimately the campaign proved somewhat abortive as peace was signed many months before Falleen and Allied soldiers were able to reach the Capital but during these months James was able to link up and hold many meetings with the Balcheprian King, whom quoted him to be "A honourable and well intentioned man committed to his principles". Upon the concluding of peace formalities James returned home along with the 5th Army, which was placed again on Active Reserve, and he spent many weeks celebrating with his men and meeting with families of those who fell in the line of duty. Appointment as Federal Representative In early 548, with the war over and peace officially signed, James began exploring further possible political avenues. A perfect opportunity arose when the aging Herbert Samuel, Federal Representative of Cartria, stood down to spend more time with his grandchildren. Upon catching wind of Herbert's intentions James made swift moves to secure his nomination as the new Federal Representative and began a swift campaign to secure local support for his move. To do so he hosted a referendum across Drosst, the Capital of Cartria, at his own personal expense to get a show of support for his bid. The referendum results found an overwhelming majority of Drossters were willing to support him seeking the position, although the question was ambiguously vague as to whether they actually supported him for the position or just his attempt to gain it. He quickly organised a grassroots campaign to rally former supports of Herbert Samuel to his cause, portraying himself as the political moderate whom they could rely upon to respect and protect the political system. On February 26th James formally submitted these results to the Imperial Office and asked them to consider them as a show of the support he held within the State compared to any other candidate. It is unknown how much credence the Emperor and his advisers gave this but James was announced as the new Federal Representative on March 1st. Following this he gave a short speech in which he claimed his main priorities over his time in office would be; "Security, Stability, Prosperity and Loyalty to the Empire". He also announced that he would be an active Representative and would constantly work to protect the interests of the "moderate majority within the State whom often get ignored and abused". Term of Office (548-551) His appointment was seen as a move by the Emperor to try and secure the long term commitment of Cartria to the Empire and all of James' initial actions indicated that this would be his course of action. In early 550 he oversaw the passing of the redrawn Cartrian Constitution which granted him a swathe of new powers to directly influence the political process, these include; the power to directly appoint and dismiss the Chancellor, complete control over the National Guard and the ability to directly decree laws. James also proved more than willing to use these powers when in December 550 he dismissed the Nationalist minority Government due to their insistence pushing the issue of Home Rule despite not having a majority within the House. He was also rumoured to have also personally lobbied for the Liberals to accept the Conservative offer which eventually led to the formation of the Conservative government. In early 551 he spoke out strongly against the Imperial Chancellor, Letho Bonhart, when he took the strong stance of refusing to accept any sort of deal or referendum with the states of Hastiga and Veldunium. James spoke out passionately urging the Chancellor not to simply ignore these referendums or attempt to smother them when they reached the Chamber of Deputies. A long standing supporter of local referendums, an empowered electorate and safe, deliverable pledges he was the obvious spokesperson to stand up for loyalty to the Empire yet appeal to people on the other side of the debate. His commitment to respecting both state referendums and their results won him much praise from both supporters of Independence seekers and Imperialists alike. Baron of Drosst (551-562) He later repeated this mantra when he threw a large ball to welcome the Emperor and Empress, who were taking their summer break in Cartria. He called for "commitment and dedication to the Empire" but highlighted that politicians "simply cannot ignore people's right to self-determination or let it be used as a tool by opportunistic nationalists". Shortly following this dinner the Imperial Office announced that the Emperor had appointed James as "Baron of Drosst" and was seen as a reward for his stalwart efforts to keep Cartria within the Empire. James continued to display his strong support for direct democracy after he managed to win almost every party in the House of Commons to endorse his proposal for a referendum on whether the Government should seek a Home Rule settlement. The results of this referendum showed that while a majority supported reform of the Imperial State structure most did not in fact support Home Rule. Following this result James announced that he would work closely with all future Cartrian Administrations to seek reform to the current structure of States. Following his appointment as Governor-General he has often been absent from Royal Parliament sessions but continues to converse regularly with the Prime Minister over the telephone and often receives briefings from the State Government on matters which require his attention. A poll around this time found that over 55% of Cartrian's felt that James was doing the right thing as Federal Representative while only 14% had major grievances with his management. Governor-General of Haalsia (553-559) In early 553 James was appointed as Governor-General of Haalsia in the place of General Grey, who was shifted to Jame's previous post of Commandant-General of the Territories. This move was seen as an attempt to bring a more steady and empathetic hand to Haalsia, especially given the recent divisive referendum which was disputed in its validity. Haalsia had long been under Falleen occupation and whos people were growing tired of both the occupation and war which still raged inside the country and James made it his mission to build a sense of cooperation and solidarity. Over the next 3 years James proved a very proactive and ambitious commander. He personally wanted Haalsia to become a State but accepted that many didnt wish to see that happen and pledged to reach out to every citizen in an attempt to make the occupation more open, transparent and trustworthy. He has lobbied many times for Haalsia to be given its own Legislative body so decisions can be taken away from Military officials and given to Haalsian civilian officials which he claims will help provide "hegemony" and "accountability" as well as local government. This plan however has yet to receive consent from the Government. During his current tenure he has oversaw both a major rebuilding programe in the Cities, the formation of the Haalsian Defence Militia and the weeding out of many resistance cells within the Capital. As of late 556 he has also spoken out many times about the suspected involvement of the Red Federation in both training and supplying Haalsian rebel forces and has often been outspoken about his frustration at officials, such as former Chief of Staff Bryce Kaldwin and his successor Aleksander Spjelkavik, for their lack of willingness to support his ideas and attempted interference in his command, over which he has threatened twice to resign. In late 558 Haalsia was reported to be at its most peaceful time since the occupation began and James worked hard to restore a sense of community and civic pride to the battered nation. However his requests for information and a plan from the Imperial Government were met with silence and this precipitated his eventual resignation from the Imperial Military in early 559. Resignation from Military and After (559-Present) In February 559 James tendered his resignation from the Imperial Military with immediate effect. In a handwritten letter to the Emperor he lambasted the Government of Nicholas Sarkozy for its "weak willed and spineless inaction" and "failing to do its duty and give direction to the forces within Haalsia". ''In a radio interview just a week later he attacked what he called the ''"utter inadequacy of the Government to listen and take the advise of the experts on the ground" as well as attacking the "hands off approach far too scared of making any decisions for fear of political". Following this interview a snap poll in the Independent showed James having a 82-13 approval rating with the general public, his +69 far exceeding that of Chancellor Sarkozy who barely scraped a positive score with an approval rating of 46-45. Following his resignation there were many talks of him forming a new political party to contest the upcoming Federal Election in 661. However James declared in the run up to the election that he would not be doing so and endorsed the Federal Liberal Party in the election. Alongside this he did a number of radio broadcasts for the party and donated 200 million Fall to their cause. Following the election results James declared that he was happy with the FLP being in government although he questioned the character and resolve of the Progressive Labour Party which formed the bedrock of the Government. Duke of Drosst (551-562) In July 562 the Imperial Office announced that James had been elevated from 'Baron of Drosst' to 'Duke of Drosst'. This increase in his title's standard was apparently a reward for James' loyal and outspoken nature about issues within the empire along with his efficient running of Cartria. This elevation took him from being Baron of the largest city in the empire to Duke of the smallest duchy in the empire, a fact which apparently caused some chagrin with James who was expecting to be made Duke of Cartria. Family and Personal Life James met his future wife, Mary Hess, during his time serving in the Imperial Navy with Viscount Leopold Hess in the Falleen-Shihan War. The two quickly developed a mutual affection for each other and were engaged a few years later in 542. They postponed their marriage until both James and Leopold were both on leave and thus able to attend the ceremony. It was also reported in the Daily Gossip Rag around this time that Mary's wedding ring had cost a staggering 100,000 Fall. In 551 the couple was found to be expecting their first child after it was announced that Mary was pregnant in an exclusive interview to The Independent. Their first child was a boy and was born in a private medical centre outside Drosst and was named "Edward Anthony James Chastel". The couple also later announced in 556 that Mary was pregnant again and she later gave birth to twins; Hannah Anne and William Henry, in late May of 557. James has been a longstanding patron of both the arts and Cartrian heritage and in 550 he was named as the "Largest single donor to the State's cultural sector" by the Cartrian Heritage Foundation. It is estimated that he spends over 50 million Fall a year on philanthropic ventures connected to this organisation alone. This is a wider part of his charitable activities which sees him spend almost 240 million fall yearly across the Empire as part of the "Dillon Chastel Legacy Fund". In 548 James announced that, following his appointment as Federal Representative, that he would be donating his entire yearly salary to Help The Heroes, a local charity that tackles poverty amongst former members of the Imperial Military. He continues to self-fund all his own ventures and political excursions. In 551 a FCB estimate estimated James as having a net worth of almost 60 Billion Fall. This is mostly in cash and business assets left to him by his father, Dillon Chastel, and through the large scale investment in War Bonds that was undertaken by James at the start of the Falleen-Shihan War. This fortune makes the Chastel's amongst the 10 richest families in Falleentium in terms of overall value, although the family has no significant source of income leaving their total value rather static. Current Held Honours *Duke of Drosst *Order of Darpar *Medal of Charles I *Order of Vinther III (Bronze) *Medal of Ignassiar *Balcheparan Campaign Medal *Knight-Commander of the Order of the Lion (House Kaldwin) Category:The Great Noble Houses of Falleentium